The Pulitzer Prize winning journalist from the Washington Post, David Finkel discusses his new book, Thank You For Your Service (Bond Street Books, 2013), a powerful book about the return of troops from Iraq and the tremendous challenges that they face at home, with Joseph Planta.

Thank You For Your Service by David Finkel (Bond Street Books, 2013). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Thank You For Your Service

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, at TheCommentary.ca.

David Finkel joins me again. His new book Thank You For Your Service has just been published and is getting outstanding notices. It’s an often raw, heartbreaking, and powerful book that looks at the lives of soldiers who’ve returned home, who have to face a new war, an ‘after-war.’ Mr. Finkel was last on four years ago, for his remarkable book The Good Soldiers. He had been imbedded with the men of the US 2-16 Infantry Battalion in Iraq. They were some of the first troops sent to Iraq as part of the ‘surge’ in 2007. In his latest book, he follows some of the same men as they reintegrate into society, their families, as well to return to their new lives. This book portrays the tremendous struggles that these men face, the system they have to navigate, and the family members so affected by the war experience. For some of the soldiers depicted in the book, their wounds aren’t necessary physical. They’re traumatised psychologically, some suffering from PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder, or traumatic brain injuries (TBI). The book is often harrowing, but it comes from a place of great humanity and understanding. It’s a tough book to read, but riveting and necessary. David Finkel is a staff writer at the Washington Post, where in 2006 he won the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting. Last year, he received a MacArthur ‘Genius’ grant. He joins me from Washington. The book is published by Bond Street Books, an imprint of Doubleday. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, David Finkel; Mr. Finkel, good morning.

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